Sunday, October 11, 2009

Prayer for Canada

On a recent trip to Barry's Bay, Ontario, where our middle daughter lives with her family, I was pleased to hear the church reciting the following prayer after Sunday Mass:

PRAYER TO OUR BLESSED MOTHER FOR CANADA

O Most Blessed Mother Mary, Mother of Mercy, at this most critical time, we entrust our country to your loving care.Most Holy Mother, we beg you to reclaim this land for the glory of your Son. Overwhelmed with the burden of the sins of our nation, we cry to you from the depths of our hearts and seek refuge in your motherly protection.Look down with mercy upon us and touch the hearts of our people. Open our minds to the great worth of human life and to the responsibilites that accompany human freedom.Free us from falsehoods that lead to the evils of abortion and the breakdown of family life. Grant us the wisdom to know and proclaim that this nation was founded on God's law and that he alone is the True Source of our cherished rights and freedoms.Guide and protect this land from every evil and from the attacks of the powers of darkness.O Merciful Mother, give us the courage to reject the culture of death and the strength to build a new culture of life. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen